Let’s Split: Croatian island-hopping is heavenly

Croatia’s miles of isles are easy hops from Split by ferry – and next year those ferries are going electric. Eva Wiseman and family explore the country’s little pockets of paradise

Croatia’s coast is made up of 1,200 islands – some are glamorous and hotelled, some are grand rocks enveloped by gulls. Some are for naturists, some are for fishermen, some have lagoons so blue they appear Photoshopped. The most sensible and affordable way to travel between these islands is by ferry and, next year, the journeys will become more sensible still. Croatian national ferry company Jadrolinija is going electric. Designed to transport up to 1,000 passengers and 156 cars each, the new ferries will operate between Split and its nearby islands. And as well as emitting fewer harmful gases, they promise to cut down journey times by up to half an hour. It’s time to start planning your trip.

I started in Split, for a week of island hopping. My family and I had a day to kill there before our afternoon ferry – we immediately cursed ourselves for not adding another two or three. We walked through the Old Town’s white limestone streets, and took a tour of Diocletian’s Palace, a Unesco World Heritage site dating back to AD 295 (and a recent film location for Game of Thrones). With more than 200 buildings within an eight-acre enclosed space, the “palace” is a mini-city of its own, a fabulous tangle of streets and bars and homes which lean drunkenly against ancient walls.